Autumn: A Novel

What can be said about the narrative structure of the novel?

Analyse the use of such features as flashbacks and flashforwards in creating the story.

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Ali Smith divides her novel Autumn into three primary parts, with each part subdivided into unnumbered, untitled chapters. Each part is meant to signify a month in the autumn season, from which the novel draws its name. Part 1 is September; Part 2 is October; Part 3 is November. Each chapter therein is less a chapter than it is a vignette or a study in thought or philosophy. Each vignette deals with a series of events, a dream sequence, a recalled memory, and so on. Studies in thoughts and philosophy, such as the final chapter of the final part, deal with ideas such as hope, life, and love. The very formatting of the novel itself in terms of the words lacks justification: there is no uniform pattern to the sentences. They flow back and forth on the pages like a Microsoft Word document, creating a wandering atmosphere reflective of the very dreamy, philosophical plot.